Benefit Cosmetics Hello Happy Soft Blur Foundation 😍

I'm not usually one to buy a foundation without little research, but after trying the Hello Happy Soft Blur Foundation* at my local Benefit Cosmetics counter I was set on this being my new go-to summer foundation.



The Hello Happy* foundation is marketed as a light-to-medium coverage which after using a couple of times I would definitely say that it is true to that , so if you are wanting full-coverage this is not the one for you. It is certainly one of the most comfortable formula's I've tried being super lightweight, but still giving me the level of coverage to even out my skin tone and blur any imperfections. It calls the finish of the foundation a natural-matte finish, which for me seems to be a slightly matte finish with a glow so not truly matte. 




This was my skin after application of Hello Happy, a bit of Hoola bronzer*, Glossier Boy Brow, Glossier Lidstar, Glossier Lashslick, Hourglass highlighter, Nars Radiant Creamy concealer* and Charlotte Tilbury Pillow Talk lipstick*. 

My one problem with this launch is that there is only 12 shades so I'm bot entirely connived that its inclusive for everyone so that was a negative for me. When I have read reviews most people seem to be between fair and medium seem happy with the shades but I haven't seen many reviews from people with deeper skin tones so I would suggest going to get colour matched to make sure its the right one for you.

Have you tried Hello Happy out yet? What is your go to summer foundation?

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21st Birthday Get-Away 🎂🎉

Its my Birthday week! Having just turned 21 I thought I would share how I spent my birthday. After just returning from Amsterdam holiday my parents whisked me away to Oxfordshire for a few days to celebrate. I had always wanted to stay at the Artist Residence in South Leigh (Oxfordshire) and my dream came true thanks to my wonderful parents.     



We started the get away with a little trip to Bicester Village Shopping Collection. I mainly wanted to head here because they had a Kate Spade outlet and I'm a little bit obsessed with her bags and purses, alas I talked myself out of the highly beautiful but impractical Piñata or cacti bag. I was very restrained and left with only a Origins Feel Good Hug Warm Ginger Body Wrap with Cinnamon, Clove and Lemon. 

Then we checked in for the night at the Artist Residence Oxfordshire* after a short drive from Bicester, so its a good location to stay if you wanted a retail trip.  From the outside it looks like your typical country pub but with the addition of penguins sculptures at the the door but its far from typical once you are inside. The Mason Arms is the Gastro Pub part of the building with the rooms for the hotel upstairs and some in outbuildings.  We stayed in the Farmhouse Loft room which was spacious, light and airy with original pitched ceilings, lead windows and wooden floorboards. Featuring super king size bed, en-suite bathroom with rainfall shower and roll top bathtub, two comfy armchairs and feature mini bar cabinets, the Lofts have an English bohemian style with eclectic artwork and touches of luxury.

We ate at the Mason Arms in the evening and my dad and I shared a 20oz Sirloin on the bone along with some chips, and gardens greens straight from their vegetable patch that you could see from our table. The food was so good and I wish I lived closer because their roast dinners sound amazing. We then settled in for the night and I had a hot chocolate in bed while we watched Poldark. 

In the morning we headed downstairs for a leisurely breakfast of pancakes with bacon and maple syrup, after my hour long relaxing bath using the fabulous Bramley products. Then we sadly checked out of the beautiful hotel and headed into Oxford for the day. 

After more retail therapy in Oxford, which I was super impressed with the new Westgate Shopping centre with a super nice John Lewis and lots of other of my favourite shops; Oliver Bonas, And Other Stories, Boux Avenue, Lush and many more!  We then stopped off at Bills for a birthday lunch which was super delicious and the ladies there were lovely. 



I'm so grateful to have such wonderful parents that treated me to this little get-away, and raised me for the last 21 years. Here's to the next 21 years!

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Zoella Splash Botanics🌴

Zoe has brought out a new range so of course I had to go out and get it. I was on the lookout for a fresh summer scent and Zoe has pulled through. The packaging for this collection is so cool and trendy, which partially swayed my decision to pick up quite a few bits from the collection. I picked up the So Soft Lip Oil*, Quench Me Body Sorbet* and Drench Me Bubble Bath Soak*.  The range is also cruelty free and vegan friendly.



The So Soft Lip Oil was the first product that really intrigued me after getting into lip oils after my ESPA ones (see my post on them here) so when I saw Zoe's was out but at a fraction of the price of other oils on the market I have seen I had to try it out! This sweet cherry-scented lip oil, enriched with a conditioning blend of sweet almond, jojoba and argan oils is designed to nourish and hydrate. The formula is really comfortable to wear and not sticky, I've used it for a week now and I definitely think for the price it is conditioning and tasty to use. The applicator is really good to use and feels like I'm not getting excess product and is easy to apply.



The Quench Me Body Sorbet features hydrating coconut water and radiance-boosting lychee. It has a light textured gel feel and absorbs so quickly, so its perfect for if you need to get ready quickly. I would say the scent reminds me of holidays and summertime, being a super fresh scent it'll defiantly be my go to summer body product. I would imagine if I kept this in the fridge it would be good to cool yourself down on hot days and keep your skin hydrated.  



Drench Me Bubble Bath Soak is one of the first tines I've used one of her liquid bubble bath product and I'm so impressed with the amount of bubbles you get when you use it. With refreshing aquatic notes and skin-loving extracts of hydrating coconut water and radiance-boosting lychee. I find this seems to smell a slight bit more fruity and fresh than the body sorbet but its still a really nice scent.



What do you think of the new Splash Botanics range? Will you be trying any of it out?

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Fresh Pasta To Your Door With Pasta Evangelist 🍝

I'm not usually one for subscriptions I have seen via Instagram but when I saw a account for pasta dishes through your letterbox I was intrigued. I saw Pasta Evangelist offering fresh pasta to your door I just had to try it out. I ordered Artisan Fusilloni with Sun-Dried Tomato Pesto, Wild Asparagus Tortelloni with Thyme Butter and Chocolate Filled Gnocchi with a Hazelnut Crumb. When it arrived it came surrounded with small cool-packs to keep it cool on delivery.

The company started in 2017 because they believe fresh pasta is best. Their founder, Alessandro, hails from Genova in the Italian region of Liguria, and was disappointed with the fresh pasta available in the UK, machine-made & a world away from the pasta of his youth, handmade by his nonna. The deliver  in the UK to homes across the country, as well as sauces & garnishes sourced from Italy. We then invite you to prepare a 5* pasta dish in just 5 minutes.

This is my Artisan Fusilloni with Sun-Dried Tomato Pesto, I must admit I did add pancetta to this as well because I just fancied some meat with it. The pasta was so delicious and fresh as well as the pesto.  The sun-dried tomatoes came from Puglia and were crushed with basil and mint leaves and then the addition of Parmigiano cheese and olio extra vergine d'oliva. It tasted really good and I would order this one again due to it also only taking about 5 minutes, to prepare to it was perfect after a long day at work.

This dish was the Wild Asparagus Tortelloni with Thyme Butter garnished with Rosemary Grissini Crumb. The wild asparagus came from Abruzzo and to compliment it they put it with creamy ricotta cheese also sourced in Italy. This felt like a really simple dish but the flavours were anything but simple. I'm not usually a fan of rosemary and thyme but it just brought the dish together and I wish asparagus was around all year at this quality!

 

These limited edition Chocolate-Filled Gnocchi with a Hazelnut Crumb was certainly a first for me. Little gnocchi with Nutella inside made it kinda hard to work out what occasion I should eat this so I had these after a small dinner as a dessert. I did slightly burn them but they were still just as lovely with the oozing melted Nutella in the middle!

Anyway, here’s £10 off your first box. I’ll also get £20 off my next box too, so it’s win-win! 

Claim your £10 off at Pasta Evangelists now! 

Key Places To Visit in The Chelsea Area

I have been spending quite a few days exploring London for the past couple of years and during my travels I have some favourite places to visit. One area of London I have come to love is Chelsea. I originally delved into Chelsea when I went to London Fashion Weekend with Canon a few years back, but then I got drawn to the area by visiting the instagrammable Peggy Porschen Bakery. I went for a day of pure exploration of Chelsea when Chelsea in Bloom was on a few weeks ago and I thought I would show you my highlights.



My favourite place has to be Peggy Porschen, both the interior and exterior is beautiful and perfect for getting those cute Instagram pictures. The cakes are also super delicious but I always feel guilty eating them because they're so pretty. The shops on the same street as Peggy are also gorgeous one off businesses and shops like Jo Loves.



My next stop is just over the road from Peggy Porschen which is Dominique Ansel Bakery. Offering both sweet and savoury dishes based from French techniques the creativity behind some of the dishes is amazing. I went for a Blossoming Hot Chocolate which is hot chocolate which is topped with a marshmallow flower encased by a thin layer of white chocolate which once placed unfolds to reveal the flower floating on top with a little chocolate truffle in the centre. They are world renowned for their Cronuts, Frozen S'mores and Cookie Shots. If your wanting an fantastic bakery experience I would recommend a visit here. They also offer Afternoon Tea which is super innovative and I want to try next time I'm down!



If you are more of a shopaholic its the perfect area to go with both big brands and small one off boutiques. My go to department store is Peter Jones because its the perfect place for customer service for outfits or gifting and they have so many brands and exclusives its a good all round base for shopping. Last time I went they had a Clifton Nurseries pop up selling super cute little succulents and plants and a Tanqueraygin pop up showcasing G&T's.



I also like visiting the boutiques for the big brands such as Kate Spade, Nars, Liz Earle, Zara, Monica Vinader, Club Monico and Tiffany & Co. The stores are so beautiful and feel special in Chelsea because they're so pristine and lavish.

Just round the corner from the Kate Spade store there is a road called Pavillion Road which was full of individual businesses from butchers, coffee shops and florist it was nice to explore niche shops in the centre of London. The Roasting Party, Bread Ahead and Provience Village Butchers looks super good when we wandered the street. There were also so many beautiful florists on so many of the streets I wanted to go to all of them!







These are just a few of my favourite places to go to in the Chelsea area, let me know if you have any recommendations of where to go next!

Glossier Lash Slick and Lidstar ✨

Now that Glossier is easily available in the UK I have been keen to keep up with their launches and I have to say this one was exciting.  Its not often I venture into liquid eyeshadow, but the shade range and that they're supposed to be sheerer intrigued me.



As I expected this colour is really pretty and surprisingly pigmented than what I thought it would be. Once it dried down it didn't budge and took a cleaner to remove the swatch because water didn't even move it! I've been wearing this over the last week or so giving it a good trial and I'm hooked. Its super quick and easy to add a wash of colour to my lids and is pretty pigmented but can be sheared out. Its longevity I've found is often better than some powder eyeshadow's I have used, and because it is shear it doesn't look as patchy when it wears over the day.



As for the mascara I am yet again super impressed, though after 248 formulations I would imagine they would have it nailed. Lash Slick curls and sculpts as it lengthens, enhancing the look of your natural lashes instead of clumping them together. Teeny-tiny fibers coat lashes from root to tip to create a lengthened baby-extension, while flexible film-forming polymers lift and lock each fiber into place. It has a tapered brush so you can get to all of your lashes with precision and ease. And it’s water-resistant, so Lash Slick washes off easy with warm water at the end of your day. I found it made my lashes super fluttery and "your lashes but better". It added length and definition without being clumpy or heavy feel on my lashes.



Here's a quick pic of me wearing the Lid Star and Lash Slick, this was simply one coat of both of the products so you can build them up for a more dramatic look but I was just milling around so didn't want to go too full glam.

Have you tried Glossier out? Let me know your go-to products! You can also get 10% off using this link! http://bff.glossier.com/i6Wim 

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Charlotte Tilbury Legendary Lashes Volume 2 Mascara

When Charlotte Tilbury brings out a new product she doesn't mess about. She just had a relaunch for her Legendary Lashes Mascara Volume 2 which is part of her Beauty Filter collection. I had used her original one last year, I was obsessed with the length and volume I got from it I had to try this new version out. Its still in this gorgeous rose gold packaging making it feel super luxurious.



The bristles head is quite large so it does require a touch of attention because I can find the bristles hit my eyelid through my lashes if I try and apply it quickly but they really do hit every single lash coated in a few sweeps. It layers really nicely if you want them to be super volumized, but I tend to stick to one coat because I find its enough for my lashes. The formula is super black, called black vinyl but its perfect compared to some other black mascaras that don't quite give the same colour payoff.



Here is a little before and after of my lashes and one quick coat of the mascara. My lashes are currently going through a bit of a crazy grow in every direction phase so they're prone to interlocking at the moment, but the mascara does separate them out a bit but I think it adds significant length, colour and volume. It really is a push up for your lashes and I find the curl holds all day, formulated to be long wearing, humidity resistant and smudge proof.



Have you tried out Charlotte Tilbury's mascaras? Let me know what you think and leave meyour favourite mascara suggestions xox